Today's read: Metro to test safety software

Crash avoidance system: Metro has developed software that it hopes can be a backup for the system that is supposed to prevent train crashes. After the June 22 Red Line crash, federal investigators said the transit authority's system was inadequate and needed a backup. (Lena H. Sun)

General Manager John B. Catoe said Wednesday night that he had no estimate on when the train system might return to automatic control. Since the crash, trains have been under the control of their operators, rather than moved by the automated system as they were designed to do. That sometimes makes for a rougher ride, but Catoe continues to believe it's safer for now.

He said the National Transportation Safety Board still has not determined the cause of the crash. But it is known that train controls failed to prevent it. Meanwhile, Metro continues daily checks on its track circuitry.